Posts

5 Tips for Linking in to Your LinkedIn Network

So you’ve made a profile on LinkedIn to add to your rotation of social media outlets. But are you leveraging the unique power of LinkedIn to assist you in your professional development?

1. Strengthen Your Profile

Do everything you can (tactfully) to make your profile stand out. How?

Choose a professional looking head shot and a background photo that represents your business. Fill out every section in dynamic detail, telling the story of what you do, rather than just listing places you’ve worked at. Optimize your search-ability by utilizing hot words that potential employers are using in their searches.

2. Connect with the Right People

You may have noticed that unlike other social media sites, LinkedIn has fewer restrictions on the number of people you can connect with daily, so build up your digital network. Conduct searches using keywords that relate to your industry or business goals, because LinkedIn will start suggesting connections that match those criteria.

3. Publish or Perish

LinkedIn allows you to publish articles on their site, so share your expertise with members of your network. Send your article to friends and colleagues, and ask them to comment, like, and share your article.

Post regularly on the homepage, and join the conversation on other people’s posts. While algorithms are frequently changing and mysterious unicorns, many experts agree that commenting on people’s posts will increase the frequency with which your posts show up in their feed. If anything, they will notice that you’re engaging them, and usually return the engagement.

4. Start a Conversation

It’s amazing that when we go to a party, we understand that there are certain “rules” of engagement, but when it comes to social media, that goes out the window as we attempt to hawk our product or service to everyone who doesn’t care.

When you make a new connection on LinkedIn, look over their profile. Introduce yourself, and comment on something interesting you noticed about them or their business.

Don’t bother selling them something, because they’ll disengage. If they’re interested in you or what you have to offer, they’ll check out your profile or business page anyway. Make genuine connections, because those are what will help you in the long run.

5. Link Your Business

LinkedIn offers the opportunity to add links to your website, blog, or freelancing page through various buttons and extensions. Take advantage of the traffic that naturally comes to your page through searches and your growing network, and redirect some of those clicks to your product or service.